Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Finally, a few action shots of the very important if not terribly exciting task of measuring the steel panels that were installed last month, including one dramatic shot of the invasion of Ms. Demeanor's domain. This work has been going on for a few weeks, monitoring to make sure that nothing has settled or shifted, and that everything is stable and ready for the next stage in the building process (at least that's my admittedly amateur understanding of what it is that they are doing), but this is the first opportunity i've had to catch the action, or more precisely, the lack thereof. I added a shot of an approaching train just for a hint of visual drama.

This is, by the way, one of those days when you can't help but feel sorry for people whose job requires them to be outside in the weather. The big, fluffy snowflakes may look pretty in these pictures, but the appeal wears off very quickly when you are out among them.

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

It seems about time for an update, lest you begin to think that i've abandoned my blogging duties. Unfortunately, there is little to report. Things have been very quiet on the substation worksite since my last update. A few weeks ago, Ms. Demeanor was consulted about allowing the work crew access to her Fortress of Solitude (aka "the porch") to take measurements and pictures of the work in progress. Since i am merely a tenant in the aforementioned FoS, i put them in touch with my landlord, who kindly agreed. So at various times in the last few weeks, there have been men in hardhats on my and my neighbors' porch. This has not been a problem, since the crew from F.H. Paschen are always polite and professional, but i think they owe me an honorary hardhat for my efforts ;-)

That's all for now, but rest assured that when the work resumes, i'll be back.

Friday, February 8, 2013

After several days absence, I returned to find the crew hard at work, despite the snow and frigid temperatures. Before anything else could be done this morning, a thick layer of ice had to be scraped off the roadway. Then there was a good bit of work along the tracks, with regular cries of "Railroad!" (which always sounds to me a lot like Scoobie-Doo calling, "Ruh-Roh!"). Distances are being measured, lines are being drawn, and a huge pile of gravel is slowly being transported from street level to track level. The colorful banners took me by surprise at first: they seemed so whimsical and random; but on reflection, they make a lot of sense since they really stand out against the snow.